Pollinisateurs / Save local bees
The European Commission omits
protection of local bees
July 23, 2018, the European Commission reacted to an initiative voted a few months earlier by the European Parliament, calling for support for the beekeeping sector and for measures to protect local bees. But in its reply, the Commission completely omitted this request from MEPs. An oversight, contempt?
CATÉGORIES : Dépêches
Date : 23 juillet 2018 Bees are under threat, especially local bees, and MEPs have become aware of this. But not the European Commission it seems.
Following the initiative voted by MEPs on March 1st 2018 regarding the future of the beekeeping sector within the European Union, the Commission reacted a few months later with a “Brief analysis/ assessment” and a “Response to requests and overview of action taken, or intended to be taken, by the Commission”To be read on the European Parliament's website.. This six-page text addresses some of the points made by the Parliament: assessment of the dangers pesticides represent to bees, the fight against adulterated honey, labelling indicating the origin of honey, etc., but it does not contain any new measures to strengthen European legislation with regard to this subject.
Above all, it totally ignores the three demands that MEPs had taken care of including with regard to local bees: « the need to preserve the value of the genetic heritage, the diversity and adaptability of endemic local bee populations […] », « legal protection and financial support for local ecotypes and populations of honeybees […] », « use all possible means to protect local and regional honey bee species (strains of Apis Mellifera bees) from the undesirable spread of invasive or naturalised alien species that have an impact on pollinators, directly or indirectly… ».
For this reason, local beekeeping associations, beekeepers and researchers specialising in these pollinating insects have no other choice but to step up to the plate again to urgently demand that these legitimate concerns be taken into account.
To learn more about this cause: www.save-local-bees.org
Dépêches
What started the #savelocalbees coalition
In March 2018, on the initiative of POLLINIS and 43 other actors for the protection of local bees and at the request of European citizens, MEPs adopted a text supporting the need to preserve the precious qualities of these foragers.